I am a bit of a practical, crafty, frugal greenie who likes to garden, cook, preserve, ferment and bake bread. I live with a bunch of chooks, a flock of quails, sixteen native bee hives, a cat, a dog and a husband. Please join us in our homesteading adventures! :)

Saturday, 21 September 2013

I like to use jars to store things in and sometimes they need to be labeled so that other people using the kitchen know whats in my jars!

I used to make all sorts of fancy labels which was fun and looked great but was annoying when the contents changed or you wanted to be more specific with the label than just "Tea" or "Coffee."

I also used to cut the name of the product off the packet and then drop it inside the jar but it usually ended up unreadable or covered up by the contents of the jar - and then just recently - I had an idea!

Here's what I did...

I cut the labels off the packets as if I was going to drop them into the jar...

And the just stuck them to the jar with a rubber band!

Too easy!

This works wel for my tea labels as I change teas depending on where I get them from from time to time.

As you can see this jar has had a number of teas in it. I keep the labels underneath the current one to save me having to chop up the box again as I often buy the same tea (or cornflour or cocoa) over and over.

This works well for me and adds a bit of character to the kitchen - where nothing really matches anyway! Its quick, easy, free and very practical!

Score card:Green-ness: Storing your food in reusable and recyclable containers is nice and green!Frugal-ness: Getting your containers and labels for free is very frugal!Time cost: About 1 minute!Skill level: Incredibly easy!Fun-ness: Great fun!!!

Tuesday, 17 September 2013

We have a lovely area under our pergola that we use a lot in the summer, especially in the evenings when everyone is home. I have had various light shades in there and the weather eventually gets to them all. So this incarnation is probably another quick fix - which works for me as I can keep changing things around - just because its fun to do!

I found this lampshade at the local op shop for a couple of dollars and was originally going to strip it all off and used a strip of a lacy table cloth that a neighbour gave me to cover it. At the last minute I decided to leave it on and cover the shade with the lace...

Here's what I did...

My $3 lampshade sitting on my craft space awaiting its make over.

Its not in A1 condition but since I'm going to cover the shade and you wont see a lot of the creases, it wont matter. I put a bead of good craft glue around the top of the shade.

laid the lace over the top and pegged it on.

I folded the lace up so that it could hand loosely over the edge of the lamp and to take the excess in at the top.

I popped the pegs all around the top until the glue had dried.

A bit of glue on the inside of the lamp helped as well

And then I simply hung it up under the pergola on the light bulb that was already there!

I think it looks great!

I'm now thinking of making another one with old doilies overlapping each other...

I could have sewed the lace shut at the bottom where is overhangs the shade but basically I was so excited to put it up that I didn't bother. I think it would look good to cover one of those rice paper lampshades with paper doilies or even to strip this one of its shade and use paper or cotton doilies to recover it. In my case, I know the weather will get to it so I shall enjoy it and then look forward to a new creation in its place in due course!

Score card: Green-ness: Using old throw out-able things to make some thing new is very green!Frugal-ness: Only spending $2 is very frugal!Time cost: About 15 minutes including waiting for the glue (to mostly) dry!Skill level: Super easy!Fun-ness: Excellent fun!

Australian Native Bee Hive Splitting Booklet.

This 30 page booklet will run you through the 5 steps to successfully splitting your Carbonaria hive. With a section devoted to trouble shooting and FAQ's there is enough information for you to feel confidant about what to prepare, what to expect and what to do when things don't go to planned. Written by native bee lovers and illustrated with full colour photos, this guide is intended to help you get through that first split and on your way to successful hive propagation in years to come.

Now available as an instant download from SendOwl at AUD $5 payable with PayPal.

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About Me

Hi there! I'm Kara, a 40-something woman who enjoys making and doing; practical, one might say! I created this blog to share my success's and failures with like minded people who also like to experiment and give it a go rather than buy brand new everytime! Would love to hear your comments on what I do!!

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Leibster Awarded Blog - March 2012 by Evi at SisterSun

Copyright

All text and pictures are my own unless otherwise stated. If you would like to use something you find on this blog, please ask first (practicalfrog@gmail.com) or make a link back. It's the right thing to do! Thank you!